Maggie Williams Statement

This statement by Clinton campaign manager Maggie Williams does not include a denial that said photograph was distributed by the campaign, which, perhaps, one can justify under the assumption that Williams doesn't have access to the e-mail records of all 700 of her employees.

To the contrary: she argues that the photograph is not offensive and that its publication and the Drudge/Plouffe reactions to it are distractions from "serious" issues.

If Barack Obama's campaign wants to suggest that a photo of him wearing traditional Somali clothing is divisive, they should be ashamed. Hillary Clinton has worn the traditional clothing of countries she has visited and had those photos published widely. This is nothing more than an obvious and transparent attempt to distract from the serious issues confronting our country today and to attempt to create the very divisions they claim to decry. We will not be distracted.”

OK -- so someone (connected to the Clinton campaign?) circulated the photo because they wanted to show everyone how cool Obama looked in it... and the Obama campaign, for questioning the motive of the person who distributed it, is being offensive?

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Marc Ambinder is a contributing editor at TheAtlantic. He is also a senior contributor at Defense One, a contributing editor at GQ, and a regular contributor at The Week.